Finding the Right Chemistry at the NBA Trade Deadline

Another great read by Tim Chisholm. Let's just hope Hedo's starting to find his chemistry with us finally.

So, with another 9 days to go until the deadline, anyone thinks we're "buying"?

Reading this also makes me think that making no move at all come deadline time is sometimes the best move.

With the trade deadline a mere nine days away, the gap between buyers and sellers has never been more pronounced. Many struggling teams are willing to entertain offers for even their brightest stars while established, title-hungry teams are itching to pilfer those very assets. One segment of the NBA is in ‘sell everything' mode, while the other is in ‘buy anything' mode, though the wisdom behind either approach is questionable at best.

For the sellers the motivation is clear: empty the ledger and start anew. Tabula Rasa, and all that. Sometimes it works (think Memphis) and sometimes it dooms you to a cycle of perpetual rebuilding (think Golden State), but if something is clearly not working it is hard to advocate maintaining the status quo.

For the title contenders, though, big changes can be harder to justify.

The big mid-season acquisition game typically brings to mind two success stories of the last decade: Rasheed Wallace and Pau Gasol. When Wallace went to Detroit and Gasol went to L.A., each team was put onto a path that eventually led to Championship glory. It is those successes that several clubs are looking to emulate in deals this winter.

However, lost in that mindset is the memory of the failures; Shaq to Phoenix, Marion to Miami, Payton to Milwaukee, even Kidd to Dallas when one remembers that Dallas was gunning for a title as motivation to make that trade. What people fail to recollect at times like this is that just getting a big name doesn't ensure anything for your club, and if the fit isn't absolutely perfect then there is a good chance the team's play can be derailed while they integrate a major new piece. This summer's activity exemplifies this fact beautifully.

What were the biggest moves this summer? Vince Carter to Orlando, Hedo Turkoglu to Toronto, Andre Miller to Portland, Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva to Detroit, Rasheed Wallace to Boston, Emeka Okafor to New Orleans, Richard Jefferson to San Antonio - notice a theme here? Every single one of these players has had trouble finding their niche with their new club and each was brought in to elevate the play of their team.

While some have begun rounding into form (Miller comes quickest to mind), most are still trying to find their sea legs more than halfway into the season. This isn't because these are bad players or because the teams that nabbed them were foolish to do so, it's because major pieces take time to integrate to established units.

that said, i would pull off a lopsided trade that does not bring too much longterm commitment, no matter what. I mean if someone wanted to give the Raps a piece that would perfectly fit our team, who could say no.

I mean, staying the course is good, but sometimes you just can't say no. Also, I think the Raps need a low post defender to come in and play some tough minutes against some of the bigger centres in the league.

On the more zany side, I might even do something like the following, if Boston were willing:

http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMa...radeId=yh9yzcv - lots of money coming off the books in the next year, and we get to shed Hedo's contract and Calderon's. We might have a playmaking problem though...and yes, I realize this is the type of trade that Chisolm is warning against. But, we aren't winning a chip this season anyways - sometimes a move makes sense for years to come, i.e. Gasol as Chisolm mentioned.

that said, i would pull off a lopsided trade that does not bring too much longterm commitment, no matter what. I mean if someone wanted to give the Raps a piece that would perfectly fit our team, who could say no.

I mean, staying the course is good, but sometimes you just can't say no. Also, I think the Raps need a low post defender to come in and play some tough minutes against some of the bigger centres in the league.

On the more zany side, I might even do something like the following, if Boston were willing:

http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMa...radeId=yh9yzcv - lots of money coming off the books in the next year, and we get to shed Hedo's contract and Calderon's. We might have a playmaking problem though...and yes, I realize this is the type of trade that Chisolm is warning against. But, we aren't winning a chip this season anyways - sometimes a move makes sense for years to come, i.e. Gasol as Chisolm mentioned.

They only just signed Turkoglu and now they suddenly want to do a cap dump centering on him? That would look bad on a level where its just as well for Colangelo to grab Bosh's hat an coat and show him the door.

Typically teams on the rise do not look to cap dump... Especially when said cap dump doesn't place them in a situation where they can be better than they are right now. You can run the numbers and I think you'll find that they're best to trade for players, not estimated cap space. Me personally, I prefer assets, tangible things, as opposed hypothetical money used on players without a known market value... Especially when those assets have real value.

a) BC is confident bosh would re-sign even following a 1st round loss;
or
b) BC is confident this team - as presently constructed - is good enough to make it past the 1st round (against one of ORL, ATL or BOS - har eff'n har).

IMO, if BC believes either of the above, then he's more delusional than even his most ardent critics think. there is NO WAY bosh re-signs w/ TO if they don't make it out of the 1st round, and there is NO WAY this team is good enough to win a 7-game series against either of those 3 teams. it just isn't. reggie ain't changing that. hedo's improved play ain't changing that. bosh & bargs playing great ain't changing that. wright actually producing OFFENSIVELY ain't changing that. DD morphing into vince circa 2001...ok, that MIGHT change it, but that ain't happening.

the simple fact is that teams do not become chip contenders by letting their franchise guys walk away (or trading them for $.60 on the dollar). some will argue that memphis has done that, but memphis also went through a complete rebuild in the process (something BC would NEVER do), got some great value in their drafting (gay, mayo), and actually got something of value back for pau. but the biggest reason has been the renaissance of z-bo. basically, they are the exception, and not the rule - and as good as they've been playing, it's not as though anyone thinks they're on the cusp of winning a title...they're at least a few years, and more moves, away (IMO). look around the league - how many current contenders have traded away or lost (via FA) their 'franchise' guy and rebounded to become contenders?

the easy argument is that bosh isn't a 'franchise' player anyway, not a guy a chip-calibre team can be built around, and that they'd be better off moving him for cap-space & assets. to that, i simply say: what is left to build with once he's gone? bargs? hedo? jack? the mystery piece that comes the other way? seriously?

i'm not gonna play the 'trade player x for a star wing' game. all i'm saying is that standing pat might be the worst thing they could do. they don't have to look to win it all this year, but they do have to put themselves in a position to get past the 1st round, and they do have to convince bosh that this team is capable of challending the upper-echelon clubs for a chip within the next few years.

i'm really happy that they're playing well lately...i just worry that it's all for naught.

b) I beg to differ... this team CAN get past BOS and ORL in the first round. Agree with your ATL assessment though.

I don't know what a chip team is... but I presume you meant "blue-chip".
A blue chip company and/or team by definition would be one that is stable and experiences excellent returns on investments and revenue/profits.

This team now is finally pretty stable, is just starting to settle into a nice groove and the results speak for themselves the last 30 games. No doubt there is always room to improve but they've been together for just 1/2 a season. Bosh can see the rapid progression... and he likes it.
Return on investment this year has been pretty good so far with the exception of Turk... Jack, Amir, Weems, Belinelli and even Wright have been excellent pick ups for the team considering what they gave up in George, Delfino, Ukic, Humphries

If Bosh leaves, it's not going to be simply because of a 1st round loss... he may leave if this team doesn't even compete, and loses the series 4-0 or 4-1. But i don't see that happening with this group. Additionally, starting next year this team will probably be the best team in the Atlantic so adding a nice piece in the off-season by going over the tax threshold will be what puts this team over the top towards the conference finals.

Not many teams can offer that kind of opportunity to Bosh with the added incentive of being the top guy.

b) I beg to differ... this team CAN get past BOS and ORL in the first round. Agree with your ATL assessment though.

let's agree to disagree. IMO, all teams playing at their peak, i don't see TO getting past either BOS or ORL. TO would need a lucky break on the part of either team (i.e. a key injury, prolonged slump, typhoon, etc.), and would need all cylinders firing to get past either.